Contractors of govt projects send legal notice to CM over ₹90,000-crore dues

The contractors have also demanded a time-bound payment schedule within a fortnight, or else they will move court

- Saurabha Kulshreshtha

MUMBAI: Contractors executing government projects have sent a legal notice to the chief minister, deputy chief ministers, chief secretary and various government departments, demanding that dues amounting to more than ₹90,000 crore be paid to them. They have also demanded a time-bound payment schedule within a fortnight, or else they will move court, they claim.

Represented by the Builders' Association of India (BAI), the contractors say they have been demanding that the government release their dues for a year, but to no avail. The work they have executed includes infrastructure projects such as the building of roads and bridges, irrigation works, and repairs of government buildings, among other things.

In February, Anand Gupta, vice-president, BAI, said at a press conference that contractors would launch a 'stop work protest' if they didn't get their money soon.